With stamps now €1, if each of the three Trinity reps — Norris, Lynn Ruane and Ivana Bacik — sent out just two newsletters a year to their electorate of 50,000 then the bill would come to €300,000.

National University of Ireland reps Ronan Mullen, Michael McDowell and Alice-Mary Higgins could do the same for their 110,000 possible voters which would cost us another €660,000 and give a total cost to the exchequer of €960,000.

Records seen by the Irish Sun show in April, Norris, a Senator for more than 30 years, raised with Finance & Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe “the significant cost of postage in relation to the distribution of his newsletter”.

On foot of this, Donohoe wrote to Ceann Comhairle Sean O Fearghail: “Senator Norris makes the case that, as a University Senator, his potential electorate of university graduates is voluminous and widely dispersed.

He argues the monthly pre-paid allocation for Senators is not sufficient.”

The numbers involved in electing Senators are relatively insignificant — in 2016 Norris’ 4,070 votes from a total valid poll of 16,064 was enough to get him a seat on the University of Dublin panel.

Norris was advised the Parliamentary Activities Allowance, available for party leaders and Independents, could “not be used for such expenditure”.

In the letter the Minister revealed: “My officials consulted with the Houses of the Oireachtas Services who advised that, as there is already a provision for postage in place (prepaid envelopes), they do not view an additional provision for postage under the Public Representation Allowance is warranted”.

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But Minister Donohoe added: “While I agree, existing provisions are adequate, I have sympathy with the view that University Senators have a constituency that present certain challenges from a communications perspective.

“Accordingly, I am supportive of the case made by Senator Norris.

“I would be grateful if the Commission could give favourable consideration to allowing such expenditure by university Senators to be covered by the PRA (on a strictly ring-fenced basis).”

When we contacted Senator Norris for a comment, he replied: “I don’t speak to The Sun.”

Leave me off the postal list - By Neil Cotter, Head of News

MY message to Norris as one of the lucky ones entitled to receive his literature would be to please leave my name off his postal list.

I would prefer the €1 was spent on almost anything else.

If I want to find out what he’s doing for me, I’ll sign up to the email or watch Oireachtas TV.

And on the issue of long service increments the Senator raised the issue of recently — I don’t get oneand don’t expect one. Welcome to Planet Earth, please quit whinging because nobody wants to hear it.

It all ends up in a bin anyway - By Kieran Dineen, Public Affairs Correspondent

ONLY one in three bothered to vote in the Trinity election while Fine Gael did their best to abolish the Upper House four years ago.

So it seems daft for Paschal Donohoe to back Norris’ call given he is in charge of the nation’s purse strings.

It’s ridiculous to spend more on literature which in mostly ends up binned straight away.

Instead of wasting more of our money, politicians should instead use social media to get their views across to people.